Brain Failure talks about challenges of performing in China, new album

China's Brain Failure was recently the subject of a lengthy story about Beijing's emerging punk scene and the challenges faced by bands who want to perform live.

Despite the massive population in China, it was extremely difficult to find live venues that would host the band, so it actually had to launch their own club, Mao Live. And running a live music venue in China is no easy task, particularly under the controlling state:

The most troublesome aspects of setting up Mao Live were the soundproofing and government bureaucracy. [The venue] was required to agree not to allow songs that were in any way "antigovernment, pro–Taiwan independence, or erotic.

Every month we must hand in all of the lyrics for all of the songs that will be sung at the venue. There are people in the government who just have this preconception that rock is the enemy. It's not like they are opposing it with reason, it's more like they don't understand it, so they are strict on it.

According to the story, the band will also soon be collaborating with notorious political rappers, Public Enemy.

You can check out the entire article here.